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ZEROED IN: FRANKIE MCRAE

BUYER’S GUIDEFIGHTING KNIVESPG. 50

GUN LIFESTYLE: GEAR • TECHNOLOGY • SPORT • OUTDOOR • HOME & PERSONAL DEFENSECOVER2 OF 2

RECOILWEBLL .COMISSUE 23

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STORY BY DAVID REEDER

PHOTOS BY DAVID REEDER AND RAY PARK

CAREER SPECIAL FORCES

INSTRUCTOR FRANKIE

McRAE PREPARES

PEOPLE FOR THE “THREE

BATTLES” THEY’LL FACE

IN A FIGHT FOR THEIR

LIFE AND REFLECTS ON

HOW AMERICANS CAN

SAVE THE WORLD.

When McRae teaches, he frequently

focuses on the fighting instead of the

specific weapon system. Some involves

what he refers to as the PRA system

— Perceive, Recognize, and Acquire or

Act, a way to train people to cut an op-

ponent’s OODA Loop. He teaches with

a shock knife when training for blades

and a shock collar when teaching other

weapons — it works just as well on hu-

mans as it does canines. It’s a kind of

operant conditioning, and he describes

it as the basis for the training of all

combat soldiers, particularly in special

operations. He uses it to train people

in tactics that allow them to fight by

themselves, rather than in a group, or

what he calls an “action figure set.”

“When you’re in your home, you’re

by yourself,” he says, still subtly but

constantly in motion. “You’re not part

of a four-man action figure set. You

have to clear your house by yourself.”

Later, in a comfortable but austere

office with a number of half-destroyed

dog toys on the floor, he leans back in

his chair to explain. Two Belgian Mali-

nois alternately sprawl on the floor or

try to climb in his lap while he’s talk-

ing. It’s clear one or both would crawl

across his shoulders and lay there like

an old lady’s stole if he’d let them.

RECOIL: OK, your career — let’s start

with what you do now and talk about

your military service later. You take

your responsibility as an instructor very

seriously. In fact, you describe it as a

calling. Explain that.

Frankie McRae: So, I was out on the

range during an Infidel Gunfighter

League match … and, literally I got

this feeling, your job is to train other

people to fight. I’m not an evangelical

Christian, but I am pretty religious. I

honestly think everybody needs to have

the basic skills to defend themselves.

The world is getting more evil. You as a

citizen of America have a responsibil-

ity, given to you by your birthright of

being an American. Part of that is to

be prepared and be self-reliant. I have

a calling to teach as many good people

as I can how to fight, and I’ve got to

live with the fact that those people have

got to leave me and defend themselves

somewhere else. Being my friend

doesn’t help you at all if you’re halfway

across the country or around the world

if I’m here. There’s nothing I can do

for you here. I’ve lost students, I’ve

lost teammates, and one thing you ask

yourself as an instructor is, “Did I teach

him everything he needed to know?”

You teach utilizing “operant condition-

ing” and you use not just shock knives,

but sometimes shock collars. Can you

explain that?

FM: I do. They’re a great tool. Operant

conditioning provides the basis for the

training of combat soldiers, especially

special operations soldiers. It’s the form

of training we use for K9s. We give two

kinds of feedback — negative and posi-

tive. But here’s the deal, it’s not what

you think. Negative feedback can some-

times be good. If I’m applying pain or

pressure and I take it away once you’re

doing something right, you’re going to

repeat that action. Positive reinforce-

ment can mean I gave you something.

If you do something wrong and I give

you a shock, that’s a positive reinforce-

ment. I can also give you a compliment

— that’s typically what people think of

as positive reinforcement. We integrate

operant conditioning to extinguish

bad habits and generate an adrenal

state, but we don’t want to overpower

someone either. It varies based on the

way an individual student tolerates and

responds to pain. Individual titration

levels will change. That’s why you have

to closely observe the student, and why

I like a 1:5 ratio of instructor to stu-

dents. We use UTMs a lot too, but that

takes a lot of involvement and cost. A

shock collar is inexpensive and easy to

use. I put it on people who consistently

“You’re gonna meet your maker one

day,” Frankie McRae tells everyone

gathered on the firing line. “Can’t be

afraid to do that.”

It’s a funereal way to begin a period

of instruction. It comes before a safety

brief, it comes before an explanation

of courses of fire, it comes before any-

thing else. The solemnity is reflected

on the attentive faces of his students.

“You have to have

the conviction to

fight and to win. In a

fistfight, expect to get hit.

If you’re in a knife fight, expect

to get cut. If you’re in a gunfight, ex-

pect to f*cking get shot. If you have to

fight — fight. You have nothing to lose

at that point.”

McRae of Raidon Tactics is a fiercely

intense but affable man who never

seems completely at rest. He’s certain-

ly never still. His instruction is pointed,

fast, and based on a long career as

a special operations soldier. It leaves

students motivated, intense, and (for

some at least) a little off balance, like

they just stepped off a roller coaster.

Originally from Wilmington, North

Carolina, he’s a firm believer that

things happen for a reason and will

unabashedly tell you training others

is his calling. A former Green Beret

medic, Frankie’s primary specialty

is 18D. Combat engineer (18C) is

his secondary MOS and as a team

sergeant he was also an 18Z (Special

Forces senior sergeant). Among his

various schools and qualifications are

scout swimmer, Level 2 sniper, rescue

swimmer, HALO jumper, SFAUC (Spe-

cial Forces advanced urban combat)

instructor, driving instructor, and many

others.

He was an exchange instructor at

the Israeli Counter-Terrorism Course

and has appeared as an expert witness

in homicide cases, including soldiers

hemmed up by the Army for shootings

conducted on missions.

Frankie uses his

medical background

in every aspect of

his instruction. Every

individual is differ-

ent, as are genders.

For instance, hip

structure. Women are

built differently than

men, so expecting a

woman to have the

same fighting stance

as a man, he opines,

is silly. “Stance gives

you three things:

balance, mobility

and stability. As long

as your stance does

that, it’s a good

stance.”

FM: I always wanted to be a Green

Beret medic, since I was a kid. I had

a Special Forces (SF) medical ser-

geant’s manual when I was 13. Couldn’t

understand a lot of it, but I had it. It

was just something I’d always wanted

to do. I was actually going to go into the

Army once, and my father talked me

out of it — and I’m glad he did. Back

then I couldn’t have told you how things

would work out, but … dad talked me

out of it and we wound up moving down

to Charleston, which is where I met my

wife. Hurricane Hugo hit, I was working

for my dad, and I decided to start my

own business. Then we invaded Panama

that Christmas, and I was mad as hell.

Man, I shoulda joined the Army! But if I

had, I would have joined from Wilming-

ton, not Charleston. I’d never have gone

to Charleston, where I was supposed to

meet my wife. I honestly think that was

the whole point. I’d been recruited by

the Citadel to go wrestle for them and

turned them down because the school

I went to beat them. Then my parents

moved to Charleston; everything kept

make the same mistake, maybe on their

leg. If someone overexposes around a

position of cover, they get a shock. It’s

like they’ve been shot.

The OODA Loop refers to an individual’s

decision-making cycle: Observe, Orient,

Decide, and Act. You use that, but also

the PRA System. What is the latter?

FM: I train people to cut the OODA

Loop. Now the aggressor has to restart

his OODA Loop. Bad guys operate with

what I call the PRA System: Perceive,

Recognize, and Acquire or Act. First,

he perceives weakness in a person,

recognizes they’re not paying any

damn attention, then he acts. We’re

going to use PRA against the bad guy,

but if you don’t have skills inherent in

their decision-making process, they

can’t act past their initial decisions.

That’s why training is so important.

Let’s back up. You were a career

special operations soldier. How did you

choose a career in the military? Did

you always want to be a soldier?

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FIGHT PROFESSOR

taking me to Charleston. Sometimes

things happen for a reason. If you don’t

let those things happen, well …

But you did end up in the Army, first

in the Ranger Regiment, then in Spe-

cial Forces.

FM: That’s right. Linda and I got

married on a Saturday. On Sunday we

moved to Asheville, North Carolina. I

was working, and I liked the job, but

I wasn’t happy. I just thought, I’m not

doing what I should be doing in life.

Then Saddam Hussein invaded Ku-

wait. The day they said, “We’re send-

ing American troops,” I went down to

the recruiting office.

I said, “Hey, I want to join the Army,

and I want to go to a Ranger Bat-

talion.” They said, “How do you know

about the Ranger Battalions?” Both of

my uncles were in the Army, both in

5th Group, Special Forces, one of them

retired. They told me all about it and

said that’s the best way to get into the

Special Forces where you need to be.

So, I went to the Ranger Regiment, to

was being a traitor to the Regiment. I

said, no, I’m not, it’s a career progres-

sion thing, but he told me I was a traitor

… the Rangers, it can sometimes be

a boy’s club, and in particular that

platoon leader. So I said, “F*ck you,

I’m out.” He made my decision for me.

I went SF, went through the Q Course

(Special Forces Qualification Course)

with 112, maybe 120 dudes, and was

one of the 12 guys who made it through

— all Ranger infantry 11 Bravos. Then

I went to 1st Group at Ft. Lewis. I was

originally supposed to be a sniper, but

my orders were switched and I became

an assaulter instead. I was at Ft. Lewis

for a few years in 1st Group’s C Com-

pany, 1st Battalion, 1SFG(A). I was on

Okinawa as an assault team leader for

F team, Troop 1 of the CIF (Combatant

Commanders In Extremis Force, a re-

gional hostage rescue, counterterrorism,

counter-proliferation unit) and deployed

all over the region working with units

like Korea’s 707, Seoul SWAT, and

similar units in other countries.

Did you spend your whole SF career in

First Group?

FM: No. I’d been an instructor at Spe-

cial Forces Advanced Reconnaissance,

Target Analysis, and Exploitation Tech-

niques Course (SFARTAETC) for just a

1/75, and had a great time there. I was

the average Ranger. I started as a ma-

chine gunner, went to Ranger School as

a PFC, and was lucky enough to be one

of the honor grads for my class. While

in the Ranger Regiment I became a

team leader and had some great men-

tors there. I was on the battalion jump

into Kuwait, which was a blast.

Despite wanting to be SF for all those

years, you said you almost didn’t go

and you came close to staying in the

Ranger Regiment. How is that?

FM: One bad NCO made the differ-

ence. I was an E-4, this was in the

Clinton years, and RRD (Regimental

Recon Detachment) Selection and SF

Selection were within a month of each

other. I was selected for RRD, then

came back and went to SFAS (Special

Forces Assessment and Selection)

train-up and was selected. I was kinda

like, what am I gonna do? I want to do

this SF thing, I’ve wanted to do it all my

life and two of my former squad lead-

ers, former mentors, had gone Special

Forces. Dammit, if they think it’s good

enough, that’s what I’m going to do,

but at the same time I loved being in

the Regiment — then this NCO said I

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year before I got orders back out to Ft.

Lewis. Denzil Ames (then command

sergeant major) helped me out and

gave me one more year at SFARTEC.

He said, “Well, you shouldn’t already

have orders, it’s only been a year, but

you did just get promoted.” I was ready

to get back into the war, believe me,

but it was hard on the family. The kids

were just getting used to, you know,

being American. My daughter was born

in Japan. We’d just put my son into

school for the first time here in the U.S.

Later on he asked if I wanted to go to

3rd Group as a team sergeant. I said,

“hell yeah,” so we stayed. I went to

B-2-3, to 3rd Group’s CIF, and deployed

with them as a team sergeant, troop

sergeant major (a troop is typically

comprised of two assaulter detach-

ments and one sniper detachment). We

stood up the ICTF, running missions

with them, and were doing rotations

with the guys from 5th Group.

So … we stayed in Fayetteville. After

that I went to USASOC (United States

Army Special Operations Command) HQ

in R&D, in a special projects team, and

retired from there at Bragg in 2010.

You mentioned that you were fortu-

nate to have many good mentors in

the Ranger Regiment and in Special

McRae wrestled in

high school for four

years. He wrestled

at 145 pounds and

earned an athletic

scholarship to Pem-

broke University. The

years he spent train-

ing with his coach

continue to influence

his teaching today.

McRae does not

worship at the idol

of doctrine or range

lore. Everything he

teaches is based on

actual experience he

or fellow soldiers ex-

perienced and often

learned the hard way

while in combat.

McRae following a

rough night in Sadr

City with a Joint Task

Force.

FIGHT PROFESSOR

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Forces. A couple of those names

will be familiar to our readers. For

instance, you specifically mentioned

Mike Pannone?

FM: Yes. Mike Pannone is the single

most professional soldier I ever met in

the Army.

I was on a SCUBA team in 3rd bat-

talion and he was on a SCUBA team

on ODA 155. I was about to start pre-

SCUBA. It starts on a Monday. My wife

goes into the hospital on Sunday morn-

ing, and she has a complication with

her pregnancy. This is how tough my

wife is, she says, “You told those guys

you were going to pre-SCUBA and you

only get one shot. You’re gonna go.”

It was Mike’s team that was running

the course. He was the NCOIC for pool

week.

could go back to work. So everybody

on the team shows up at 05:45 for

PT formation and everybody’s like, We

are gonna go f*ckin’ kill everything.

Then the command sergeant major

comes up and says, “We’re gonna go

run off some steam boys, let’s go.” So

we break up and run just as the sun

is coming up. The Japanese people

were standing out on their porches and

clapping as we were running by. The

Japanese flag, the rising sun? I’d never

seen it before. That day the rising sun

was out. Even the Japanese people

were pissed. It was amazing.

Anyway, here we think we’re going

to deploy in the next three days, and

I remember our battalion commander

calls us up to this little theater we had

up there and goes, “Hey guys. How

long after the Pearl Harbor attack did

we attack Japan?”

We were all like, “Aw, shit, I dunno,”

and he says, “Well, I can tell you right

now it wasn’t three f*cking days.” We

still had Head Start that week, the long

mandatory cultural education course.

It had been on the training calendar

forever. It was the only time the majority

of us could be there. So we sat in Head

Start for a week after September 11.

Talk about being pissed off. It was a hell

of a week. When we went, we deployed

to the Philippines, working against Abu

Sayyef and JI (Jemaah Islamiya).

Now that you’re retired you run Raidon

Tactics and Range 37 PSR. What are

those companies, what’s the differ-

ence, and which came first?

FM: Raidon came first. We started

providing training back in ’08. I got a

business partner and wound up buying

the range sometime later. It was all but

abandoned then, had 15 members. We

put the berms back up, rebuilt every-

thing. My brother helped with a bunch

of it; the pro shop looks awesome. Now

we have 500 members. The range sup-

ports Raidon, which also does security

So, I showed

up the next day at

05:00 and … we

would go all day.

That, I think, is

one of the hardest

schools in the

Army, but he put

a private from HQ

by a phone with

a number the

hospital knew to

contact. Five days

later, she’s still

in labor, I’m still

in pre-SCUBA,

and there’s still a

private sitting by

that phone.

So, I’m about

to do a crossover, and there’s the edge

of the pool. I’m about ready to pass

out. As I go to touch the wall I see this

hand stick into the water. I’ve gotta do

a flip turn to go back the other way,

this hand grabs my hair and pulls me

up outta the water, and it’s Pannone.

He says, “You’re wife’s in labor, get the

f*ck out of the pool.” I was thinking,

“No shit she is.” He says, “No, she’s

having a baby, get the f*ck out of the

pool, now.” I think that’s the only time

I ever heard him cuss. So, he has a

private come over and grab me up and

take me to the hospital. That was the

birth of my son. Mike is good, good

people.

What was it like for you in the days

following the September 11 attacks ?

FM: We were locked down at Torri’s

Station in Japan right during Sep-

tember 11 for a typhoon. When the

planes hit here in the morning, it was

about 11 at night there, so we had

hours to sit and watch the news and

wait. Like dogs in the kennels, getting

frustrated. Everybody wanted to just go

kill everything. But you know what’s so

funny; it was September 13 before we

McRae has strong ties to Quality K9 Concepts (QK9C), which

breeds and trains Belgian Malinois. The two so often sprawled all

over him in his office are Tig (short for Tigra) and Odin. “Tiggy”

was imported from Czechoslovakia. She was bred to Dutch, the

great grandson of Elgos, a dog Frankie describes as “the greatest

Belgian Malinois in the history of the breed.” Range 37PSR is set

up specifically not just to accommodate dogs, but to incorporate

them into training. For instance the kennels are located not too far

from the range so the dogs can get used to the sound of gunfire. “I

am at best a novice trainer,” admits McRae. “I’m a disciple of Matt

Hammond. I love it, love working with them. Working with the dogs

is my therapy.” McRae is on the Board of Directors for H-3 Veteran

Services, a nonprofit that trains canines taken from animal shelters

to be service dogs for veterans.

THE MALIGATORS

FIGHT PROFESSOR

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haul around a full loadout for your

everyday carry. Handgun, knife, cell

phone, keys … sometimes not even a

spare magazine. Why is that?

FM: A good run is better than a bad

stand any day. If you can get away

from it, get away from it. Soft skills

are important. I’m never not looking,

never not conniving. I’m always paying

attention to, “I can use that if I have

to, I can use that I need to.” I was in

a convenience store and a guy came

in to rob the place … all I had in my

hand was a Mountain Dew bottle, so

I was going to use that. Soft skills are

extremely important. A good run is bet-

ter than a bad stand any day. Even if

you win the fight, if you die on the way

to hospital I still win as the bad guy.

You speak of the three battles every-

one faces if they have to fight for their

life. What are those, and what do you

mean?

FM: There are three fights you’ll

have to deal with. Number one is the

emotional fight. So many Americans

are taught it’s wrong to kill. There’s a

difference between killing and murder.

There’s a moral obligation or that reli-

gious part that some people cannot get

past. You have to decide long before

you get into a situation, make up your

mind now not then, that I’m going to

use whatever force I have available to

me to win this fight. You have to have

full conviction in your heart and mind

about survival, that you can wound or

maim or kill. Make it right with your

God and your morals. That’s the emo-

tional/spiritual fight.

The second is the actual physical

fight. It tests your skills and your en-

durance. That’s what we learn our skills

on the range for, why we train with our

weapon systems, our hands, our head,

our teeth … that’s why we teach how to

gouge eyes and bite. You also prepare

for the physical fight with medical skills

and hardening. When you have skills, it

consulting and business consulting, not

just tactical stuff. Our guys have been

to Kurdistan, Afghanistan, Bolivia,

Mexico, and other places.

Are Raidon cadre also Range 37 PSR

instructors or are the two separate?

Whom do you instruct?

FM: There is some overlap. There are

some instructors who work for both

Raidon and Range 37PSR; some are

unique to each. All of them teach my

way, the SF way. Teach the snake to

train and kill other snakes. We teach

shooting, driving, advanced concealed

carry, aerial platform shooting … most

of what we do for our DoD clients we

do for law enforcement and our civilian

students, with the exception of any

classified TTPs. We have a civilian

HALO class and just recently taught a

static line airborne course right before

the Green Beret Pro Am. We’ve trained

just about everybody in Special Opera-

tions Command, mostly what they call

“enablers.” We teach hard skills and

soft skills to signals guys, psyops,

intel, and civil affairs … the guys an

SF unit must have to get the mission

done. We use our own range and have

some other training areas. We lease a

1,000-acre farm to run exercises, and

the farmer is one of our role players for

scenario-based training.

Unlike some folks, you don’t typically

opens up avenues of egress.

Number three is the legal fight. That

will come. As an expert witness on

more than one trial for U.S. Service

members charged with first-degree

murder for killing Afghani terrorists and

combatants, I’ve seen the aftermath of

the financial burden placed soldiers.

The average cost was $180,000 that

they had to pay out of pocket for legal

defense. If they’ll prosecute a soldier,

they sure as hell will prosecute a civil-

ian if the local government is at all

liberal. There are other legal aspects to

look at as well. The legal use of force

may be justified, but a missed shot

that hits someone else can be devas-

tating to the whole family.

Earlier you said, “A good run is better

than a bad stand any day.” Can you

expand on that?

FM: A good run is better than a

bad stand because only you know if

you’ve prepared for the fight up to

that point. A warrior can only afford

to die once. Running headlong into

defeat is not only stupid, it endangers

others. That is more important than

self-preservation. If a man has the

jump on you with a gun or knife in your

throat or head, give him the wallet. It’s

only money. Turn away if you’re not

prepared for that fight in the right way.

But if that fight is happening anyway

and there’s no way to avoid it, go down

biting, screaming, punching, kicking,

and anything else you can do to cause

harm. Always pick your battle space,

prepare your defenses, and have a way

out if need be.

What advice would you give to a young

American who wants to be a Ranger or

Special Forces?

FM: You know, Special Forces, a Rang-

er, SEAL, any job in the military — you

need to be able to solve problems.

You need to be physically fit. You need

to be able to look ahead and to plan.

McRae wrestled

in high school and

went to Pembroke

University on a

wrestling scholarship.

He credits his

wrestling coach,

Alan Sewell, as being

one of the most

influential people

in his life, teaching

him the value of hard

work and dedication.

Sewell’s 30th and

final season as a

wrestling coach

recently ended and he

is preparing to retire.

Frankie attended a

reunion to celebrate

that event with his

former coach and

early mentor.

COACH ALAN SEWELL

FIGHT PROFESSOR

McRae tells us his

EDC is most often

a Glock 19 in an

Advanced Holster

Systems rig for

concealed carry, or

sometimes a S&W

Airweight 38+P. “I’m

a big hammerless

revolver guy,” he

says. He carries a

Spartan Blades knife

and spare mags while

on his motorcycle,

but usually not

otherwise. When

teaching, training, or

doing certain kinds

of security consulting

his preferred rig is

a plate carrier from

Tactical Tailor and

the Raidon Belt they

helped develop with

Archangel. “I really

like the Archangel

multi-caliber nylon

holster,” he says. “I

go through so many

guns depending on

what I’m teaching, so

instead of switching

stuff out that one

holster does it all.

FRANK MCRAE’S EVERYDAY CARRY

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press free speech, the right to practice

whatever religion we want. 

All of these things are what others in

the world want for themselves and their

children. We don’t need to go and force

our values on others, but when a people

is being oppressed by a government

with no rights of the people to pick

their leaders, we, as Americans, need

to be there to free them. Then once

we’re done, we leave. I used to wonder,

does it seem the world is getting more

evil because we have 24-hour news

cycles and better communication? But

I’ve realized it’s not. There is more evil

You’ll need to have focus and motiva-

tion. My dad gave me focus, some-

times with the belt, but my wrestling

coach is the one who showed me what

dedication and hard work would get

me. You need to challenge yourself. If

you’re not challenging yourself, you’re

not growing. You know, that’s what we

would tell any kid, not necessarily just

one going into the military. Any kid

who wants to be a good human being

and a good American. Being born an

American is a birthright. Every human

has a calling. God gave us a talent.

It’s our job to find that talent and help

others with it. You can’t be a good

American if you’re not.

You said Americans need to be strong

and prepared, so that America can

save the world.

FM: I believe that as Americans we’re

in the lowest part of our history. We

can keep getting lower, or we can act

now to change it and rise back up.

It all relies on our people. We’re Ameri-

cans and we were founded on certain

ideals and principles that we as a na-

tion are no longer following. The Spe-

cial Forces motto is De Oppresso Liber.

It means to free the oppressed. I’ve

spent my whole career trying to live

by that motto. Our country is the only

one in history to have the freedoms we

have — to live without a class system,

to have a government that doesn’t sup-

in the world than 50 years ago. There

is more greed, more oppression, more

terrorism. America is the only nation

on Earth that can help the entire world

fight this evil. The first way is to elect

leaders who can stand up to evil, not be

a part of it, and to fight the fights that

need to be fought. Some people will

say that the military needs to do that.

I say, as Americans, we all fight that

evil every day, by being good citizens

and good examples to the rest of the

world. America has saved the world in

the past. One day we’ll have to do that

again. The world is calling on us now

and we are not answering that call. 

For more about McRae, Raidon Tac-

tics, H-3 Veteran Services, and the folly

of the “four-man action figure set” tune

in to RECOILweb.com. We’ll talk more

about the OODA Loop and PRA System,

why Frankie went to a muzzle-up ready

and movement position with his rifle

after a tour in Baghdad, and how a raid

in Sadr City convinced him to change

to boarding house rules (everyone gets

firsts before anyone gets seconds) when

servicing multiple targets.

FIGHT PROFESSOR